Salepersons for business machines, such as typewriters, adding machines, bookkeeping machines, word processing equipment and the like, normally carry with them the machines they are to demonstrate and sell. Since these machines are usually of substantial bulk and weight, they are difficult to carry, and as a result various types of carts have been developed to enable the salepersons to transport the machines from their vehicles to the place where the demonstration is to be conducted. Such carts are generally collapsible so that they may be easily stored when not in use. However, when erected, it is still necessary for the salesperson to lift the machine from the vehicle and place it on the cart. This is often difficult to do because of the bulk and weight of the machine, and the problem is magnified where the machine is stored in the trunk of a conventional passenger vehicle. Many salespersons prefer to store the machines in the trunk of a vehicle, as opposed to using a stationwagon, in that the machine is out of sight and the chances of theft are materially reduced. However, because of their weight, the storage of business machines in the trunk of an automobile imposes a very substantial physical strain on the salesperson and increases the chances of the machine being dropped, in which event the damage can be very substantial.
To overcome the problem of removing a heavy business machine from the trunk of an automobile, it has hitherto been proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,251,178 to provide a cart construction which included a trunk loading attachment by means of which a business machine could be lifted from the trunk of an automobile and affixed to the cart. While useful for its intended purposes, the device taught in the aforementioned patent is of complicated construction and requires a very substantial amount of manipulation on the part of the user, including the assembly and disassembly of rail members required to transfer the machine to and from the trunk of the vehicle. The construction also relies on the use of a heavy coil spring to counterbalance the weight of the business machine during transfer, which adds to the complexity of the device as well as making it difficult for the user to manipulate the transfer mechanism. In addition, the cart itself is in the nature of a two-wheeled dolly which supported only a part of the weight load, the salesperson bearing the remainder of the load as the dolly was moved from place to place.
The present invention seeks to overcome the difficulties encountered with hitherto known trunk loading devices by providing greater simplified mechanism by means of which a business machine or other bulky objects may be readily loaded and unloaded from the trunk of an automobile.